


Fake It 'Til You Make It

by dontrollthedice



Category: Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Holidays, M/M, Mutual Pining
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-23
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:01:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,226
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28272045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dontrollthedice/pseuds/dontrollthedice
Summary: “Oh, he’s a YouTuber like you?” his mother asked. “Tell me about him.”Spifey took a deep breath.Okay, focus, George. You have a boyfriend, he’s a YouTuber, he lives in the States. What would this person be like?“So his name is Harvey,” he said.Wait.Oh, fuck.
Relationships: George | Spifey/Harvey | TapL
Comments: 50
Kudos: 168





	Fake It 'Til You Make It

**Author's Note:**

> fake dating au fake dating au fake dating au

Winter was always such a bitch of a season.

On one hand, winter was beautiful. Snow in the UK was a rare occurrence for Spifey, but he had enough friends around the world to see pictures of snow in various landscapes on a regular basis. Both the pictures of the pretty landscape and the people who looked so content in them made him smile.

On the other hand, Christmas family reunions existed. And although Spifey loved his family, sometimes they were a tad overbearing.

“Mum,” Spifey sighed, “I’m fine on my own. I’m an adult, you don’t need to worry about me.”

His mother hummed doubtfully at that. Ouch. “I don’t know, George… You get into your own head too much when you’re alone. Is it wrong of me to worry?”

She wasn’t wrong, and Spifey hated that. He had to admit his track record living alone hadn’t been great. Sure, he had moved farther distances, but he had always lived with roommates of some sort when he lived too far away. His mental health had only tanked when he was alone.

But this time, he was doing fine. He knew his mother had reason to worry, but he was a grown adult who could handle himself, even if he was the youngest. Being babied all the time was irritating.

“I just don’t want you to feel upset after Christmas when you go back home. I would feel better about it if you had somebody to go back home to,” his mother murmured, half to herself and half to him. Then she gasped. "Wait, don't tell me…"

Spifey didn't like where this was going.

"George, do you have someone you're hiding from us?"

What the fuck?

Spifey opened his mouth to answer with an “absolutely not,” then stopped to think.

While he didn’t care for the insinuation that having a romantic partner was somehow the cure to loneliness, he understood that his mother was a relatively old-fashioned person trying her best to care for her youngest son after he grew up. She had worried too much about him since he was a child, from scolding him for playing in the dirt to insisting he get a degree in case the whole YouTube thing didn’t work out. The constant worry was out of love.

She had already spent too much of her life worrying about him. So what was wrong with a little lie to relieve some of that worry?

“Um… yeah,” Spifey said.  _ Don’t laugh, George. Don’t laugh.  _ “I’ve been seeing someone for a while now. Not too long, though.”

“Who could be this—” His mother paused to laugh. “—Charmer of a person?”

Okay, now she was just making fun of him.

Spifey huffed, his face heating up the slightest bit. “Mum!”

His mother let out a cackle before her laughter finally stopped. “Alright, alright, I get it. Tell me about her.” She paused. “Or him. Or them. See, I’ve been listening to what you tell me. I don’t understand where you get this idea that I don’t.”

“Because you never listen to me when I tell you I’m okay being—”

“Shush. Is it one of your friends? That, um… Zak person?”

Spifey chuckled at that. Bad probably wouldn’t be too happy if Spifey pretended to date Skeppy. “No, no, he has a boyfriend already. Or, uh, kind of a boyfriend. But it is one of my friends, yes.”

“Why don’t you bring them over then?”

Oh, fuck, he didn’t think this far.

Spifey’s mind scrambled to reach for an excuse. “I, um… uh…”

Then it hit him.

“He’s in the States,” Spifey said. “Traveling would be a bit difficult, with all the activity during the holiday season. I’d hate to ask him to pay the more expensive prices, you know?”

His mother huffed. “George, just pay for him.”

“Wh—he’s a YouTuber, too, he can pay for his own things.”

“Oh, he’s a YouTuber like you?” his mother asked. “Tell me about him.”

Spifey took a deep breath.  _ Okay, focus, George. You have a boyfriend, he’s a YouTuber, he lives in the States. What would this person be like? _

“So his name is Harvey,” he said.

Wait.

Oh, fuck.

“Harvey as in your roommate a year ago?” his mother said.

What the fuck? Why would he say that? Where was the undo button?

“Yeah,” he said.

No. He could’ve just pretended it was a different person. Why did he say yes? Why did he say that? And why did the words keep tumbling out of his mouth?

“I mean, appearance-wise he’s a lot shorter than me, right at the perfect hug height. He has these eyes that shine in the sunlight, really soft black hair. You’ve probably seen him before, right? Honestly all of him is just so…” He cut himself off before he could gush to his mother of all people. “He’s the kindest person you could ever meet, Mum. And he makes me laugh every day. And he’s smart and humble and sweet and—”

“You sound like you’re really in love,” his mother said softly.

Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck—

“Yeah,” he answered as the systems in his brain were set ablaze and immense amounts of regret set in. “I guess so.”

His mother hummed. “I think you should bring him over. He seems like a person me and your father would like to meet.”

Well, Spifey wouldn’t argue against that last part. Now that the original panic was fading, he could think a little more clearly. But this might’ve been more difficult than he had originally anticipated.

“I’ll see what I can do,” Spifey said.

“No, seriously. If your partner can’t afford the tickets, me and your father will pay.”

“That’s really not necessa—”

His mother shushed him. “We didn’t stop being your parents the minute you turned eighteen, George. Now, go tell your boyfriend about this trip.”

“Alright. Bye, Mum. Love you.”

“I love you, too, George.”

And with that, the dreaded phone call was over.

God damn it.

Spifey slammed his palm against his forehead, laughing at himself. Whether it was a sad laugh at how far of a hole he had dug himself into or a laugh at how absurd this entire situation was, he didn’t know.

He rubbed his eyes and prepared for the most awkward phone call of his life.

* * *

“And that’s why I need you to pretend to be my boyfriend.”

Silence.

Then Tapl burst out laughing, and Spifey slumped to hide his burning face behind his hands.

The call had been a wreck from the start. Spifey had asked Tapl to get on Discord with him and play a couple games of Skywars. There were just two things wrong with that: one, they had transitioned to using Telegram and TeamSpeak more often, never Discord. And two, they never played Skywars together. Not anymore anyway. Tapl had apparently caught onto that, because it was halfway through the third game when he gently asked Spifey what was wrong. The explanation (with the more embarrassing parts neatly spliced out) came out in a whirlwind after that.

And here they were now, Tapl laughing hysterically while Spifey regretted every choice in his life that brought him to this moment.

“Dude, you  _ lied  _ to your mom? You really said my name?” Tapl asked through his laughter.

“Okay, I didn’t mean to,” Spifey said, rolling his eyes. “You’re making it sound like I intentionally lied to her. I did not intentionally lie to her.”

“Oh, no, I know. I’m just saying you’re an idiot.”

Well, Spifey had nothing to say against that. He sat back in his chair with his arms crossed and face flushed red as he waited for Tapl’s laughter to stop.

While he had conveniently left out the finer details of that conversation (namely, all the stuff he had somehow spouted about Tapl when prompted to), it was no less embarrassing to have to ask someone to bail him out like this. It was made worse by the fact that Tapl would undoubtedly hold this over his head forever. Spifey owed him so many favors if he agreed to this.

Thankfully, Tapl’s laughter did eventually fade away. “So, you’re telling me,” Tapl said, “that if I agree to this, I’m basically going to the UK for a week?”

Spifey squinted, struggling to remember what his mother had told him. “Yeah. The twenty-third to the first of January. I still need to ask about when everyone else is coming, though.”

That was true, as far as he knew. His mother had corralled everyone into a family group chat the other day, but given how many group chats Spifey was in, he tended to miss important information.

“And it’s free for me?” Tapl asked.

Spifey rolled his eyes. “I mean, yeah. I’m not gonna ask you to pretend to be my boyfriend without paying for you. My parents offered to pay for the flights, but there’s no way in hell I’m letting them do that.”

“Well, George, I don’t really care about the price. You don’t have to pay for me.”

“Why would I not? It’s the least I could do.” Spifey paused. “Wait, does that mean you’ll—”

Tapl laughed, and Spifey found himself smiling along to it. “Yeah, why not? I mean, I already spend enough time with my family as it is, and I get to hang out with my friend while making him pay for everything. Win-win for me. Maybe not so much for you.”

And even in this shitty disaster of a situation he had dug himself into, Spifey found it in himself to laugh along, the weight on his shoulders now gone. “Hey, that doesn’t mean I’ll pay for everything, you know.

They fell into a conversation about the UK after that, then transitioned to playing Bedwars together.

It felt natural. It felt like he was at home.

“Hey, shitass,” Tapl called, “wanna see me speedbridge?”

And when Tapl fell into the void with a screech, Spifey burst out laughing.

If this was how the week in the UK went, Spifey had nothing to worry about.

* * *

He had so much to worry about.

“Are you sure you’re fine with this?”

Spifey could practically hear the sigh in Tapl’s voice as he said, “I’m sure.”

“... Okay, but are you  _ really—” _

“George, if you ask me that again, I’m gonna throw myself out this window and you’re gonna have to find yourself another fake boyfriend.”

Spifey fell silent. He doubted he could find another person matching Tapl’s description in a day.

But his concerns were valid, and he knew Tapl was aware of that. Tapl was one of his most cherished friends. The possibility of this making him uncomfortable enough to distance himself from him, to stop talking to him altogether…

Ugh. Spifey felt light-headed at that.

“Hey, Geo,” Tapl called, his voice softer.

Spifey stopped to listen.

“No matter what happens, I’m always on your side, okay? Even if you have some crazy cousin or some weird uncle, you’re still my friend. You don’t need to worry about anything.”

Well, Spifey knew that already. Tapl wasn’t the type to judge based on uncontrollable things like family.

But what if the bit went too far? Was Tapl really okay with Spifey’s family assuming they were dating? Was he comfortable with that? They had talked about probably having to share a bed and needing to be more physical with each other—none of that was new given their time as roommates. But what if Tapl changed his mind or it felt all weird now that it was in a romantic context? What it—”

“Goodness, I can hear you thinking too much,” Tapl muttered. “You think about things too much. Turn your brain off for a second.”

Right. He had been told he thought too much.

Spifey shut his eyes and took a deep breath. It was one week (plus a couple days) of hanging out with one of his best friends. It would be like they were roommates again! He missed that more than anything in the world.

“Better now?” Tapl asked.

Spifey smiled. “Better. Thank you. How’d you know I was overthinking?”

“I mean, I know you, dude. You kinda zoned out, so I figured there was something going on. Don’t worry about it though, okay? Instead, think about how sad your wallet is gonna be after this trip.”

Spifey scoffed at that. “You wouldn’t even let me pay for your flight. You’re nothing but empty threats.”

“Hey, is that a challenge?”

“I’m still refunding you for that flight, by the way.”

“What? No! Shut up!”

Spifey laughed as Tapl yelled out various threats at him, opening the PayPal app on his phone and closing out of it as Tapl rambled.

Tapl seemed to think this wasn’t a bad idea. And if nothing else, Spifey would place his trust in him.

* * *

Meeting up with Tapl shouldn’t be sending this many butterflies fluttering in his heart, but it was. Hell, they had lived together before; why was this happening?

“Uh, I’m not sure what’s happening,” Tapl said with a phone held up to his ear, “but this sign says I’m coming out of Gate B. So I’m probably coming out of Gate B. In fact, I’m out right now.”

Spifey snickered, watching a familiar man in a red hoodie walk back and forth on the pavement. Tapl hadn’t noticed him yet even in the dwindling crowd. Time for a bit of trolling. “Yo, which gate are you at again?”

“I just said Gate B.”

“Sorry, which gate?”

“Gate B?”

“Gate what?”

Then Tapl’s gaze met his, and Spifey couldn’t help but grin. “Gate B as in you’re a bastard for not telling me you could see me.”

“Hm, I don’t think that starts with a B.”

Before Spifey could start laughing, Tapl dodged and weaved through the crowd towards him. But instead of a punch on the shoulder like Spifey expected, Tapl threw his arms around him and pulled him into a tight hug.

Aw. His heart warmed at that.

“Hey, Harvey,” Spifey called after wrapping his own arms around Tapl.

“I missed you,” Tapl said, his words muffled by Spifey’s scarf. He said that so gently, so genuinely, handled the words with such care that Spifey felt he might cry on the spot.

Spifey squeezed tighter and hoped that was enough to convey the love he struggled to express with words. “I missed you more.”

They stayed like that, oblivious to the world around them. But ultimately, the universe moved on whether they wanted it to or not.

Spifey separated from the hug, his movements sluggish with reluctance, and offered Tapl a smile. “You ready for suffering?”

Tapl met him with a grin so warm it could melt snow. “Always! I mean, I am friends with you.”

Spifey pouted and smacked him lightly on the shoulder as Tapl laughed. “I don’t like you.”

“Aw, is that any way to speak to your  _ boyfriend?” _

Spifey didn’t know why he had been worried all this long. Tapl was clearly having more fun with this than he could’ve ever hoped for.

“You’re not funny,” Spifey chuckled. “Come on, the car’s in the car park. It’s, like, a three hour drive, so we should get started now.”

“Three hours? I’m stuck with you for that long?”

“Is that any way to speak to  _ your _ boyfriend?”

Tapl huffed and punched his shoulder, but he followed when Spifey began the trek back to the car park.

Spifey directed his gaze down to the pavement.

Boyfriend. Why did that word feel so weird?

* * *

“Driver picks the music.”

“Geo, we’ve been listening to the same Clairo song for an hour.”

Spifey glanced at Tapl, and he supposed that was enough to make him back down because Tapl slumped in the seat with a pout.

The rest of the car ride was silent, though Spifey wouldn’t hesitate to snicker when Tapl started bobbing his head along to the music.

* * *

“Yo, you wanna get dinner at this shady petrol station?”

Tapl leaned to look out the window on Spifey’s side and blinked. “Oh, wow, that’s shady.”

“Wanna go for it?”

“Hell yeah.”

* * *

It was late at night by the time they arrived at his parents’ house. Spifey had parked next to his parents’ car, noting that nobody else had arrived yet. Maybe he really should’ve checked when everyone else was coming.

“Nervous?” Spifey mused after knocking on his parents’ door.

Instead of laughing like he had expected, Tapl glanced down at his shoes, shifting his weight from side to side. “I mean… you already know my mom likes you. I don’t think I’ve even talked to your parents before.”

Oh. That was true.

But then again, why would anybody not like Tapl? Sure, they were both acutely aware of the people out there who vocally didn’t like his content, but Spifey couldn’t wrap his head around why anyone would dislike him.

And so he said as such.

“I don’t see why anyone wouldn’t like you,” Spifey said with a shrug. “You’re pretty amazing.”

Tapl’s face remained stony, but his breath stopped and something shifted in his eyes at that. Still, Spifey couldn’t decode it in time before the door swung open to his mother.

“George!” his mother called. “You’re home!”

Spifey laughed as she reached up to ruffle his head. “You say that like it’s a surprise.”

“As if you don’t try weaseling your way out of these family holidays.”

“Just because it’s true doesn’t mean you have to say it.”

Then his mother’s gaze shifted towards Tapl, and her smile brightened. “Oh, you must be Harvey! It’s good to meet you, dear.”

Tapl offered her a smile back. “It’s nice to meet you, too, Miss…” Oh, he was struggling. Spifey could practically see his brain chugging. “George’s mom.”

Spifey laughed at that, only to receive a glare that made him laugh even harder.

“George, don’t be rude,” his mother huffed. Then she grinned. “But yes, you can call me Miss George’s Mum.”

Okay, teasing. This was going fine so far.

Red tinted Tapl’s face as he glanced upwards to Spifey for guidance on what to do. And Spifey, having finally decided his friend had endured enough teasing, ushered him into the house.

The living room was empty, unlike every other family holiday when his cousins would already be messing with his brother (He would call them little shits if he didn’t distinctly remember walking away from his brother’s cries for help. Maybe he deserved all those noogies as a kid). His mother had slipped away to the kitchen, and soon his father emerged holding a glass of… something.

Spifey sighed. “Dad, are you drinking spiked tea again?”

“That was one time,” his father said. He offered a smile towards Tapl and waved. “You must be Harvey. George told us a lot about you.”

Oh god. His mother told him about what Spifey had said, didn’t she?

Spifey chuckled nervously, shooting his father the  _ please shut up and don’t embarrass me _ look.

And luckily, his father spared him for today, because he only stuck his hand out for a handshake. “Nice to meet you, Harvey! Welcome to the family. Sorry in advance.”

Tapl’s shoulders relaxed at that, and he shook his father’s hand, quietly saying a greeting in return.

And when Tapl turned to shoot him a proud smile, Spifey had to smile back.

* * *

“You really left all this in your room?”

“Hey, I haven't finished moving everything yet.”

“It’s been a month.”

“You’ve been a month.”

Tapl leveled a disbelieving look at him, then laughed.

Spifey crossed his arms, but even he had to admit Tapl had a point. Besides the obvious bed and desk that had been left behind, his guitar was still hung on the wall where he had left it. A couple of his old coats still hung in the wardrobe, and there were some trinkets he had forgotten about in the drawers. It was just as messy as he had left it.

“It’s not that bad,” Spifey said, to which Tapl rolled his eyes and parked his suitcase next to the wardrobe.

Tapl didn’t respond to that, staring up at his guitar and biting his lip. He never hesitated to wear his heart on his sleeve. It also wasn’t difficult to tell something was bugging him, but that didn’t mean he would immediately open up to him.

“So,” Spifey said quietly, “my other family members are coming tomorrow morning. You wanna hear me play something on guitar before they come and wreck everything?”

Tapl turned to him with a smile, his eyes brighter than the stars outside. “Really? I didn’t know you knew how to play.”

“I mean, I still don’t really know how to play.”

“But you know something. That’s worth celebrating.”

Fuck. Why did his heart flutter at that?

Spifey sighed and reached up to grab his guitar off the wall. He sat on the edge of his bed as he nestled the guitar into place in his arms. Warmth flooded his chest when Tapl eagerly sat down next to him.

“What do you want me to play?” Spifey said softer than he expected.

“Just play what you’re comfortable with.”

Well, Spifey had no issue with that. He strummed the beginning chords to a song he knew by heart, the world disappearing around him.

When he returned, Tapl cheered and clapped. He gazed at him as if he were the only person who mattered, and Spifey couldn’t help but smile.

He loved the way Tapl looked at him. He hoped Tapl loved the way Spifey looked at him, too.

* * *

Eventually, even their shitty sleep schedules couldn’t keep them up for longer.

Tapl emerged from the connecting bathroom with his everyday clothes, his eyes still wide and alert. “Am I supposed to feel sleepy right now? I don’t feel tired.”

“I mean, isn’t it pretty early in LA?”

“... Oh, right. I forgot time zones existed for a bit.”

Spifey tried to chuckle, but a yawn cut him off. Exhaustion wore down on his bones. Driving for two hours to the airport then three hours to his parents’ place had finally taken its toll. And then there were all those preparations his mother had roped him into preparing for when the rest of the family arrived… But he remembered staying up with Tapl to the late hours with so much fondness his heart melted thinking about all their late-night conversations, jokes, discussions. He had to fight off the sleepiness.

“Dude, if you’re tired, just go to sleep,” Tapl said.

Spifey blinked. Was it that obvious? “I don’t want to, like… just leave you alone like that. I feel bad about it.”

“Then what, you want me to fall asleep with you?”

Spifey hesitated upon realizing he did, in fact, want Tapl to fall asleep with him. Why did he want that? It wasn’t like he couldn’t fall asleep alone.

Tapl set his phone on the nightstand before crawling into bed next to him, leaving a good amount of space. He huffed when Spifey turned to smile at him. Was that red on his face? “Dude, stop looking at me like that. Just go to sleep.”

Spifey giggled to himself but turned away.

Tapl was so sweet to him, even if he didn’t like it being acknowledged. His friend was so goddamn sweet to him.

Spifey drifted to sleep, loved and content.

* * *

It didn’t last for long.

“Holy crust, why’s it so cold?” Tapl muttered, his rustling rousing Spifey from sleep. From the little moonlight peeking in through the blinds, Spifey could see him twisting and turning a good space away from him.

Spifey sighed and shut his eyes. “Because it’s winter in London, idiot.”

The rustling stopped. “Oh, shit, you’re awake.”

“Yeah.” He opened his mouth to snark, then remembered where he was and why Tapl was here with him. “Do you want me to get another blanket for you?”

“No, it’s fine. I can handle a bit of cold.”

“You were literally just bitching about how cold it is.”

“People change.”

“In five seconds?”

“Yes.”

Spifey sighed. Tapl didn’t want him to get up to grab an extra blanket, but Tapl wouldn’t know where the blankets were (that and Spifey honestly didn’t trust his coordination enough to send him navigating a dark, unfamiliar house). But he distinctly remembered Tapl complaining about sleep deprivation when their AC had broken back at their old flat. Tapl probably wouldn’t be able to sleep in the cold.

Well, he supposed there was only one solution.

“God, you’re such a California boy,” Spifey said. He held his arms out. “Just come here.”

Tapl hesitated. “I mean, do you want me to?”

“Do  _ you _ want to?”

“It’s not that I don’t, it’s just… do  _ you?” _

“Harvey, I cannot overstate how much I don’t care.”

Tapl paused before scooting into his arms, resting his head near Spifey’s heart.

And suddenly, Spifey’s heart felt like it was running.

“Sorry,” Tapl mumbled into his chest. “You’re warm.”

Spifey held him tighter, ignoring the heat rushing to his face and the fuzzy feeling building in his chest. He was helping a friend out, nothing more. Physical affection between friends was completely normal.

So why did he want this to last forever?


End file.
